Podium Finishes NSW/ACT

Well we spent the first 2 weeks of this trip following the Murray in NSW and the last week in NSW and the ACT. So now that we have arrived home I can give you my NSW/ACT podium finishes for Cities/Towns, Attractions/Experiences and Caravan Parks/Camp Sites 

Cities/Towns

1.     1.  Sydney – the place we departed from and the place we returned to. The place we call home. 96 Chapman Ave Beecroft, a place of peacefulness, love, respect, tranquillity and happiness (have I got the right address??). A great city that we yearned to return to.

2.    2.   Albury – it was an impressive country town. It was big and alive with some major thoroughfares. Its parks and gardens were nice, right on the Murray. A bustling country town with energy.

3.    3.   Jindabyne – always has been a pretty town by the manmade lake and at the foot of the Snowy Mountains.

Honourable mentions go to Corowa and Deniliquin. Corowa was a pretty little town on the Murray. Deniliquin was a serviceable town trying hard. It had an impressive nature heritage park off the main street of town and is the ute capital of Australia which was not part of my lifestyle but there you have it.

Attractions/Experiences

1.     1.  The Murray River – without a doubt following the Murray River all the way to the SA border and beyond offered some spectacular scenery, walks and was the lifeblood to many towns we visited. Having spent so much time on the Murray, it was also nice to see the mouth of the Murray at Goolwa SA.

2.    2.   Mt Kosciuszko – having the whole family climb to the top of Australia was a fitting end to our journey. It was obviously impressive up there.

3.       3.The Murray Lock – a little controversial as to whether this is really NSW or Victoria. But after trying to explain to Georgia and Andrew what a lock/canal was and how it worked with bodies of water that are at different levels, one of the paddle steamers arrived at lock 11 at Mildura on the Murray and we saw it all unfold over 20 minutes first hand. A picture or live demonstration can tell a thousand or ten thousand words.

Honourable mention goes to the Echuca paddle steamer trip down the Murray (controversy above noted). It was a lovely journey down Australia’s biggest river and taking in the activity on both banks. Also the confluence of the two great rivers, the Murray and the Darling at the town of Wentworth had some geographical significance.

Caravan Parks/Camp Sites

1.       Buronga Caravan Park – Buronga is the less known twin city on the NSW side of the Murray across from Mildura. Very impressive and perfectly placed park to access Mildura and witness all the events on the Murray. Most caravaners stayed here rather than in Mildura. The park had all amenities you needed, well looked after and economical.

2.       Wagga Big 4 – this was the very first park we stayed in. Good clean park, very social, great camp kitchen, on the banks of the Murrumbidgee and nice grassed area for cricket.

3.       Jindabyne  Big 4 Caravan Park – despite some rowdy late night customers, it was a pretty site right on the shores of lake Jindabyne.

The journey along the Murray and all the towns it supported was the highlight of the NSW leg of our trip and climbing Kosciuszko was a nice way to finish.